1. The Fire-festivals in general
ALL over Europe the peasants have been accustomed from time immemorial to kindle bonfires on certain days of the year， and to dance round or leap over them. Customs of this kind can be traced back on historical evidence to the Middle Ages， and their analogy to similar customs observed in antiquity goes with strong internal evidence to prove that their origin must be sought in a period long prior to the spread of Christianity. Indeed the earliest proof of their observance in Northern Europe is furnished by the attempts made by Christian synods in the eighth century to put them down as heathenish rites.
Not uncommonly effigies are burned in these fires， or a pretence is made of burning a living person in them； and there are grounds for believing that anciently human beings were actually burned on these occasions. A brief view of the customs in question will bring out the traces of human sacrifice， and will serve at the same time to throw light on their meaning.
The seasons of the year when these bonfires are most commonly lit are spring and midsummer； but in some places they are kindled also at the end of autumn or during the course of the winter， particularly on Hallow E'en (the thirty-first of October)， Christmas Day， and the Eve of Twelfth Day. Space forbids me to describe all these festivals at length； a few specimens must serve to illustrate their general character. We shall begin with the fire-festivals of spring， which usually fall on the first Sunday of Lent (Quadragesima or Invocavit)， Easter Eve， and May Day.
2. The Lenten Fires
THE CUSTOM of kindling bonfires on the first Sunday in Lent has prevailed in Belgium， the north of France， and many parts of Germany. Thus in the Belgian Ardennes for a week or a fortnight before the day of the great fire， as it is called， children go about from farm to farm collecting fuel. At Grand Halleux any one who refuses their request is pursued next day by the children， who try to blacken his face with the ashes of the extinct fire. When the day has come， they cut down bushes， especially juniper and broom， and in the evening great bonfires blaze on all the heights. It is a common saying that seven bonfires should be seen if the village is to be safe from conflagrations. If the Meuse happens to be frozen hard at the time， bonfires are lit also on the ice. At Grand Halleux they set up a pole called makral， or the witch， in the midst of the pile， and the fire is kindled by the man who was last married in the village. In the neighbourhood of Morlanwelz a straw man is burnt in the fire. Young people and children dance and sing round the bonfires， and leap over the embers to secure good crops or a happy marriage within the year， or as a means of guarding themselves against colic.
In Brabant on the same Sunday， down to the beginning of the nineteenth century， women and men disguised in female attire used to go with burning torches to the fields， where they danced and sang comic songs for the purpose， as they alleged， of driving away the wicked sower， who is mentioned in the Gospel for the day. At Paturages， in the province of Hainaut， down to about 1840 the custom was observed under the name of Escouvion or Scouvion.
Every year on the first Sunday of Lent， which was called the Day of the Little Scouvion， young folks and children used to run with lighted torches through the gardens and orchards. As they ran they cried at the pitch of their voices：
Bear apples， bear pears， and cherries all black To Scouvion！
At these words the torch-bearer whirled his blazing brand and hurled it among the branches of the apple-trees， the pear-trees， and the cherry-trees.
The next Sunday was called the Day of the Great Scouvion， and the same race with lighted torches among the trees of the orchards was repeated in the afternoon till darkness fell.
In the French department of the Ardennes the whole village used to dance and sing around the bonfires which were lighted on the first Sunday in Lent.
Here， too， it was the person last married， sometimes a man and sometimes a woman， who put the match to the fire. The custom is still kept up very commonly in the district. Cats used to be burnt in the fire or roasted to death by being held over it； and while they were burning the shepherds drove their flocks through the smoke and flames as a sure means of guarding them against sickness and witchcraft. In some communes it was believed that the livelier the dance round the fire， the better would be the crops that year.
In the French province of Franche-Comté， to the west of the Jura Mountains， the first Sunday of Lent is known as the Sunday of the Firebrands (Brandons)， on account of the fires which it is customary to kindle on that day. On the Saturday or the Sunday the village lads harness themselves to a cart and drag it about the streets， stopping at the doors of the houses where there are girls and begging fora faggot. When they have got enough， they cart the fuel to a spot at some little distance from the village， pile it up， and set it on fire. All the people of the parish come out to see the bonfire. In some villages， when the bells have rung the Angelus， the signal for the observance is given by cries of， To the fire！ to the fire！ Lads， lasses， and children dance round the blaze， and when the flames have died down they vie with each other in leaping over the red embers. He or she who does so without singeing his or her garments will be married within the year. Young folk also carry lighted torches about the streets or the fields， and when they pass an orchard they cry out， More fruit than leaves！ Down to recent years at Laviron， in the department of Doubs， it was the young married couples of the year who had charge of the bonfires. In the midst of the bonfire a pole was planted with a wooden figure of a cock fastened to the top. Then there were races， and the winner received the cock as a prize.
